The Minnesota Senate this week approved a bill to significantly expand vaccine access by allowing dentists with appropriate training to administer the flu and the Covid vaccine to patients. The legislation gives Minnesota additional flexibility with its vaccination plan, particularly for residents of rural communities.

“Minnesota’s vaccine rollout has been broken from the start,” said Sen. Scott Newman (R-Hutchinson). “We’re improving by the day, but a lot of those improvements are not being fully realized in rural communities. Giving trained dentists the authority to administer Covid vaccines will get more vaccines in the arms of more vulnerable patients much faster.”

Current law allows for trained dentists to administer the flu vaccine to patients nineteen years old and over.  This bill enables dentists to administer the flu and the COVID vaccine to patients sixteen years old and over with vaccine training. 

Although currently there is a lack of available COVID vaccine in Minnesota, adding dentists to those able to administer the vaccine will increase accessibility as more vaccine becomes available. The CDC has recommended training more healthcare professionals to give the COVID vaccine to prepare for mass vaccinations.  According to the American Dental Association, twenty states currently allow dentists to administer the COVID vaccine.  Other states are also considering legislation to allow dentists to administer the COVID vaccine.